


i say hello

by rachelwrites



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Fluff, Life Changing Field Trip, M/M, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:09:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28332897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rachelwrites/pseuds/rachelwrites
Summary: toph and zuko finally have their life changing field trip, taking the form of lots of stupid fun and healing trauma. but mostly, lots of fun.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong & Sokka
Comments: 4
Kudos: 55





	i say hello

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this for atla secret santa on tumblr!!! it's a gift for @timefire25, and the prompt was "Toph and Zuko going on a life changing field-trip together". i hope you enjoy!!!!

Zuko woke up to a loud crash.

He bolted upright, and upon seeing a shadowy figure in his room immediately pounced. Zuko internally groaned at the fact they were going to have to change the tally from “37 days since last assassination attempt” to zero.

Zuko rolled his eyes before pushing the intruder off his bed and jumping off himself, throwing a punch only to have his fist meet the air. Something grabbed his knees and pulled them together, forcing him to fall backwards. Thinking quickly, Zuko put all his weight into the fall and somersaulted out of his assailant’s grasp. Just as soon as he had been freed, he felt a weight on his chest and heard a familiar voice say. “Yikes, Sparky.”

“Wait,” Zuko said, “Toph?” when he heard no response he quickly shot a blast of fire at the nearest post, illuminating the room. The young earthbender sat on top of him with the widest grin he’d ever seen. “What on earth are you doing here?”

Toph stuck her tongue out. “Surprising you, duh,” she said. “Didn’t think you were gonna go crazy on me though.” Zuko shoved her half-heartedly and she got the message, quickly moving to sit beside him. “I’m free, you’re free, so you are treating me to a super fun day in the capital of the Fire Nation Zuko!”

Sitting up, Zuko rubbed his head. “And why would I do that, when you’ve just invaded my room and interrupted the very little but incredibly precious sleep I get?”

Toph cocked her head in response, pretending to think. “Hmm, maybe because we’re best friend? Plus, I know you’re free. Plus, you owe me a life changing field trip.”

She was right. Zuko had promised her, actual _ages_ ago when they were still kids fighting an unwinnable war, that someday he would take her on a life changing field trip just like he (apparently) had for the rest of their little gang. Five years of leading a sovereign nation later and he had never delivered.

Well, to be fair, he had been busy with the whole leading a sovereign nation thing. And at seventeen, it wasn’t like Toph was staring at the ceiling in her free time either. The last time he’d gotten a letter from her she was travelling around the Earth Kingdom looking for a new class of recruits for her metalbending academy.

Zuko rubs the back of his head. “Sorry about that,” he says, having the good sense to sound at least a little ashamed. “I’ve been pretty busy running a country and all that. Which, unfortunately, I have to continue today.”

Toph snorted. “No you don’t.”

“What do you mean, _no I don’t_?” Zuko asked, cocking his head in confusion.

“I mean, you really don’t have work today,” Toph says, “Sokka cleared your schedule so we could hang out. Something about you not working yourself to death while he’s gone?”

Zuko sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. Sokka’s been gone for two weeks, and it’ll be another week before he’s back in Caldera. And, as much as he hates to admit it, his fiancée is right that he’s pretty much the only one who can force Zuko to take a break. He can remember Sokka looking at him the morning he left for Cranefish town and saying “You better not have worked yourself to death by the time I get back.”

Does only sleeping every other night kill you? Zuko hopes not.

He looks back at Toph. “He really cleared my schedule?”

“Yup,” she responds crisply, “at least that’s what he told me in his letter last week. Along with his specific instructions about _not letting you die_. But I bet we can fudge those a little bit, right?”

Despite himself, Zuko grins. “If you want to kill the only non-fascist Fire Lord the world has seen in a century, be my guest.”

Toph frowns. “Now Sparky, that’s exactly the kind of self-deprecating talk I’m here to stop! Why would you want to die when you could spend the day with _me_ instead?”

It takes all of Zuko’s strength to not mutter that compared to spending the entire day with Toph when she’s like this, dying probably is preferable. That’s when he realizes. “Wait, so you’ve known you were going to be here for a week? Why didn’t you write me a letter or something?”

“I was under strict orders to surprise you,” Toph says. “Sokka was pretty sure that if you had any idea of what he’d done, you’d undo it.”

And yeah, okay, that’s fair. Sokka’s right on that one. “Okay,” Zuko says slowly, “then why did you decide to wake me up in the dead of night by sneaking into my room?”

Toph rolls her eyes. “Well I _thought_ it was going to be fun. And you ruined that by attacking me. So really, it’s your fault that this plan didn’t go entirely seamlessly.”

“Toph,” Zuko interrupts, “I deal with multiple assassination attempts a month—”

“Details!” Toph shrieks, shaking a dismissive hand in his general direction. “Plus, your guards let me in. You think if it was a real assassination attempt you wouldn’t have heard shouting before someone got into your room?”

Zuko shrugs. “Well, it was you. If anyone could figure out a way past the royal guard it _would_ be you.”

Toph smiles. “I’m flattered,” she says, “and while you’re right, I promise I wasn’t trying to murder you. And it’s not the middle of the night.”

“It’s dark out,” Zuko says, gesturing generally to the room, “What do you mean—”

He’s interrupted by a blinding light. Zuko covers his eyes and hisses. He attempts to dive back towards his bed, seeking the comfort of the darkness under his covers, but a hand grabbing on to the back of his night shirt stops him. “It’s late morning, Sparky,” Toph says. Zuko pouts, hearing the grin in her voice even as he’s not facing her. “My very first marching order from your fiancée? _Make sure he sleeps in_.”

+

As much as he’d originally been opposed, Zuko had to admit the day was going wonderfully.

He and Toph started off in the training room, where she managed to beat him in just about every round they fought. Zuko did his best to claim it was because he hadn’t worked out all week (true), but Toph insisted it was simply because she was a better fighter than he was (truer).

After they’d ventured into Caldera, Zuko wearing his usual undercover cloak and hood to no avail due to Toph’s insistence that people would give her free things if they knew “she was in with the royalty”. By and large, her strategy worked. Zuko had bought her three new headbands, a new metal bracelet, and some nunchaku. He’d managed to pay for none of it.

After they’d worked up an appetite wandering around the market they sat down for a late lunch at a soup and noodle place Zuko frequented when he went into the city. The chef was happy to see him and even happier to let Toph eat her way through the menu, again entirely free of charge. They left in a hurry after Toph had somewhat accidentally started a food fight, hoping to maintain plausible deniability. Zuko wanted to be able to go back after all.

Then they took the long way back to the palace, and by the time they’d reached the front gardens the sun was already setting. He heard a jangling noise and turned quickly to Toph, asking her if she heard it to.

“No…” she started before Zuko stopped walking. “Okay, fine! I might have taken a few things off some of the stands in the market.”

Zuko sighed, looking at the turtle duck pond in front of him in hopes it would bring him some calm. “Turn out your pockets, Toph.” She managed to look a little sheepish as she took the stolen goods out of various holes in her clothing. Jewelry, ornaments, perfumes, but Zuko drew the line at a candlestick. “When do you even need to use candles?” he asked. “You were getting everything for free anyway.”

Toph shrugged. “It’s less fun when there’s no danger involved.”

“Zuko!” Zuko turned to the source of the shout, finding a little girl he knew mainly as one of the gardeners’ daughter running at him. She often sat with him by the pond, blissfully unaware of who he was. He waved for her to come over, thinking that she would love to meet Toph.

“Excuse me?” Thundered a voice from behind him. Zuko winced, recognizing it as one of the more traditional members of his council. “A peasant dares to address the Fire Lord by his first name?”

Zuko turned to face the perturbed noble. “I promise, it’s truly fine. She’s too young to be aware who she’s addressing, and she sees me often.”

The councilman scoffed. “Not too young to know the natural order. Doesn’t she know young women are meant to be seen and not heard?”

That’s when Zuko heard a sharp intake of breath from right beside him and looked to find Toph rooted to the ground, her eyes screwed shut in anger and her fingers clenched.

He remembers, of course, the stories they’d shared early on in his time in the wilderness. Toph had been the first member of _Team Avatar_ , as Sokka had so cleverly dubbed them, to truly accept him. Their nights spent talking about stuffy parents and feeling stifled by the expectations set on them by nobility was a huge factor in their bonding. And while they hadn’t talked about it frequently since, Zuko would never forget how the remarkably well put-together twelve-year-old he’d met crumbled thinking about the way she was forced to conform.

“Excuse me,” Zuko said, channeling all the harshness his sister often used to boss him around, “but last I checked this was _my_ court and _I_ set the so called ‘natural order’. And while this young girl here is welcome to do and say whatever she wants,” he turned back to the child and smiled to reassure her before wheeling back around to the councilman and sharply pointing, “ _you_ are not. Pack your bags. I expect your letter of resignation from the council and a list of recommended successors by morning.”

The man sputtered, attempting to apologize. Zuko fixed him with a steely glare and crossed his arms. “My word is final,” he continues. “Goodbye.” The man turns on his heel and walks away and Zuko turns to Toph, still frozen in place and leaned down to whisper, “If you want to let to door, or the ground, kick him on his way out, feel free too.”

Toph slowly smiles until her grin is practically stretching her face with glee. She gives a quick but powerful stomp, sending a channel of split earth to chase the man until it suddenly stops under his foot, lifting him up and throwing him a solid ten feet forward. Toph cackles, seemingly have regained her usual good spirits.

Zuko turns to the little girl and kneels in front of her. She’s a little star struck, but clearly scared. “Hey,” he says, “you can do whatever you want. You know that?” She nods but continues to look terrified.

Zuko feels a hand on his shoulder. “Move aside, Sparky,” Toph says, pushing him out of the way to take his place, ‘I’ve got it from here.” She looks at the girl and says, “People will always try to tell you what to do. But you have to figure out what _you_ want to do, okay?” Toph smiles at the girl. “That’s what’s most important. Because _you’re_ what’s most important. You should do whatever makes you happy, you got that?” The girl smiles, the message clearer coming through Toph. “And if people are making you do something that doesn’t make you happy, you just yell at them that you don’t want to do that. Can I hear you try it?”

The girl takes a deep breath in. “I don’t want to do that!” she screams at the top of her lungs. She seems shocked at her own volume, and then very pleased. “That was fun.”

Toph smiles. “It always is, kiddo.” She gives the girl a high-five and then says, “you should probably get back to your place for supper.” The little girl nods and gives Toph a quick hug before running off.

Zuko turns to Toph in awe. “You ever thought about being a mother?”

Toph snorts. “Please. Teaching the lily livers at the academy means I need to know how to be reassuring every once in a while. I plan on never having those conversations with anyone who shares DNA with me.”

He chuckles before standing, reaching out a hand to help her up as well. She takes it and he asks, “Are you okay?”

Toph pauses for a moment before nodding. “Yeah,” she says, “I am. Now let’s get back to your place and have a feast fit for a Fire Lord.”

They walk in comfortable silence back to the palace and when they’re about to knock, the doors swing open. “Fire lily!” Sokka says, opening his arms to embrace his fiancée, “You’re home!”

“ _I’m_ home?” Zuko asks, hugging the other man tightly. “You’re not supposed to be back for another week!”

Sokka pulls back and shrugs. “Things were basically over, and I got bored. And I missed you. And I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see Toph!”

Zuko grins. “Well, lucky for you, Toph will be here all week,” he says, looking at the girl beside him. “If you have the time to stay?”

Toph smiles. “For you? Always.” She starts to walk into the palace. “While you two have your sappy reunion, I’m gonna get started on dinner because I’m _starving_.” Toph pauses next to Sokka, thumping him on the shoulder so hard he shakes. “Nice to see you too, Snoozles.” With that, she walks past the two of them.

“Why couldn’t I pass up the opportunity to see Toph?” Sokka grumbles, rubbing his shoulder. Zuko surges forward to kiss him, cupping his cheeks to pull him close. When he finally, slowly, pulls back, Sokka looks a little dazed. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Zuko responds, smiling softly. “I missed you.”

That seems to snap Sokka back to attention. “I missed you too,” he says, “but did you have a fun day with Toph? I didn’t know I was going to be coming back early, and I thought it would be a nice surprise.”

Zuko takes his fiancée’s hand. “I had a great day with Toph, dear,” he says. “In fact, some might even call it life changing.”

**Author's Note:**

> leave a comment or kudos to show me you care! follow me on tumblr [remusloopins](https://remusloopins.tumblr.com/)


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